Find the right diabetes drug

In one “Saturday Night Live” skit, Kristin Wiig plays a woman in a Chantix commercial. As in any real drug commercial, the narrator comes on listing possible side effects: “If you notice ... a powerful, overwhelming desire to kill the person you love most, call your doctor right away.”

And, “If you notice symptoms such as rashes, fever, droopy lip, jazz hands, Robert De Niro face or Incredible Hulk strength, call the police right away.”

The list of side effects jammed in at the end of real drug commercials often seems staggering, but a new review in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism looked at 1.6 million people with Type 2 diabetes and found that a third of prescriptions for metformin, the first-line drug used to manage diabetes, are never filled. Researchers think the drug’s side effects, like gut problems or having to take one or more pills daily, discourages folks from taking it.

If you’re skipping your prescribed diabetes med(s) or know someone who is, work with your doc or talk to them about doing so. Find a treatment routine to stick with. There are lots of options, more every year.

Taking your prescribed diabetes medication is crucial to help prevent complications like eye, nerve, heart and kidney disease, and AMPUTATIONS! (Lifestyle upgrades also are crucial: daily exercise – 10,000 steps – and avoiding the Five Food Felons of added sugars and syrups, processed grains and sat and trans fats.)

You deserve better health, and you have the power to make sure you get it!